Fayetteville trustees adopt $8.35 million budget, override state tax cap

The Village of Fayetteville Board of Trustees adopted a $8,352,274 budget for fiscal year 2025–26 and passed a local law to override New York State’s 2 percent tax levy limit, the board decided at its April 28 meeting.

Mayor explained the board must adopt the override to avoid state penalties because assessments and tax rates have pushed the levy above the state cap; the mayor said the levy exceeded the 2 percent threshold by roughly $144,000 and that the override places the levy at about 4.45 percent given this year’s assessments. Trustee Mark moved to adopt the budget and Trustee Dan seconded the motion; the motion carried on a voice vote of trustees present.

The adopted plan sets the tax‑levy amount to be raised at $3,354,359 and proposes a tax rate of $6.60 per $1,000 of assessed value, a decline from last year’s rate of $7.00 per $1,000. The board’s budget summary presented an increase in the total budget of about 9.4% over the prior year and cited assessment growth of roughly 13.3% as a primary driver.

Trustees emphasized restraint while preserving services. Several trustees said they worked through multiple budget scenarios and added two reserve accounts intended to cover employee benefit liabilities and village property repairs. The board also approved a $50,000 increase to the tree commission line to accelerate street‑tree maintenance.

The board discussed potential funding approaches for future capital needs and noted one option could include short‑term bonding or use of restricted water‑fund balances to bridge reimbursement timing for larger projects. The meeting record shows trustees asked staff to continue monitoring revenues and to revisit possible cost‑saving steps over the coming year.

The budget adoption was recorded as the board’s formal approval for the 2025–26 fiscal year; trustees completed the vote at the meeting and the local law overriding the tax cap was filed as part of the annual budget action.